© Steve Etherington for Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Ltd.
Lewis Hamilton says he saw Toto Wolff gesturing towards the camera after he passed Max Verstappen and it made him “laugh inside”.
During the whole Brazilian Grand Prix weekend Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff showed his fiery side, especially after the race on Sunday when he blasted the FIA for their decision over the weekend.
Ahead of the Qatar Grand Prix, Lewis said he loved seeing Wolff’s tougher side.
“I love seeing Toto’s fighting spirit, it makes me so happy,” said the Briton.
“There’s a shot I saw of him at the last race and it just made me laugh inside, it was so good.
“If Toto cared less and was just chill, I don’t know… that fire and passion is a part of our infrastructure and our ecosystem and it trickles down from him.
“He’s the leader of the team and you want that in your boss, someone that’s out there go-getting and pushing and chasing every millisecond and with you along the way.
“So I love that he stands for what he thinks is right. We’ve grown hugely [close] over these years, as we will continue to do.”
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Lewis was also asked if he thinks the on-track and off-track battles between him and Max Verstappen might take away from the magnificent 2021 title fight, he said he doesn’t believe so.
“I don’t think so. It’s what sport is, right? It’s intense, the battle on and off-track… I think there’s no reason why as men it can’t be discussed and figured out.
“I think at the end of the day, respect is definitely important, that we remain respectful of each other, on and off-track.
“Of course I’ve relooked at [the Brazilian GP incident with Verstappen] and have a different viewpoint naturally now. [But] I’m just putting all my energy to setting up the car, making sure I’m in the right headspace this weekend…
“I’ve just been focusing, sitting with Bono [race engineer Peter Bonnington] and the engineers. We’ve got to really start this weekend [strongly] and make sure we bring the fight to them.”
